What was behind the Buddha's decision to go off into the forest? A desire to be happy, Thai forest monk Thanissaro Bhikkhu teaches in the talk below. In fact, he says, this desire underlay all of Buddha's efforts.
More »

Here's Reggie Ray on Facebook:
You read these books on Tibetan Buddhism, and it’s very complicated. Has anyone read any of those books? They’re very complicated. There are a lot of stages and paths and different levels, and sometimes you become completely ...confused. Eventually you begin to feel that the Buddha’s way up there you can barely see the top of the ladder—and it’s very important to remember that actually that’s a metaphor, and the Buddha’s actually right here. The closer we come to our own heart, the more we have gone through what they’re talking about.
More »

... Or how many lamps in the Buddha's birthday tree?
Either way, yesterday’s post about Vesak got me wondering: when was the Buddha born?
As it turns out, there is a long scholarly discussion on the date of the Buddha’s birth (is anybody surprised?). The traditional date given in most Southeast Asian countries is 624 BCE. Scholars in the West and Asia have long rejected this date and, until recently, have placed the date somewhere between 567-563 BCE. These days, however, and increasing number of scholars place the date of the Buddha’s birth later—some even arguing that it could be up to one hundred years later than previously believed (463 BCE).
More »

The Jade Buddha for Universal Peace is an intrepid traveler. The 10-foot (13-1/2 feet on its alabaster throne) 4-ton statue is now sitting pretty in Worcester, Massachusetts (above), in the parking lot of the Linh Son Temple, formerly a single-family home. When its tour of the North America, Europe and Asia is complete, the statue will make it's home at the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion, in Bendigo, Australia. It's official website reads:
The purpose of exhibiting the Jade Buddha around the world is for everyone, irrespective of their religion, to take a moment to reflect upon peace; peace for the world; peace in their relationships; peace for their families and friends; peace at work; peace in their mind.
More »

. . . and happy enlightenment, and happy passing away.
Today many Buddhist countries around the world celebrate Vesak (sometimes called Buddha Purnima or Buddha Jayanti), a holiday that commemorates all three of these major events of the Buddha’s life. It takes place annually at the end of May, when the moon is full.
More »

In Tricycle’s most recent issue there is a piece titled “It Takes a Saint.” In this piece, Tai Situpa Rinpoche shares his beliefs on what it will take for Buddhism to become truly established in the West. He writes,
"I’ll make it simple: One Western person must attain full enlightenment in the same way as Marpa, Milarepa, or Padmasambhava. If one Westerner—man or woman, doesn’t matter—attains that level of realization, then pure dharma will be established in Western culture, Western language, and environment, and so forth. Until that time, dharma can be taught in the West, which is already happening; it can be practiced in the West, which is already happening; and it can be recited in Western languages. But it’s not yet one hundred percent complete."
Read the whole piece here.
More »